Ukrainian Pianist Discovered by Brussels

Previously, The Day reported that the Belgian Embassy organized a concert by Vitaly Samoshko, a young Ukrainian pianist, winner of the 1999 Queen Elizabeth Contest’s Grand Prix in Brussels.

The musician appeared with a versatile program, including Schubert, Chopin, Skriabin, and Prokofiev. Vitaly represents the Kharkiv school, tutored by Prof. Leonid Marharius. His first success came in his teens, winning the Lysenko Republic Contest in 1988. The young man has since annually appeared in international contests, never returning home without a prize. This spring he first vied in Brussels, winning the Queen Fabiola Grand Prix after a pitched creative battle. “A total of 159 performers from different countries vied in the qualifiers,” recalls Vitaly Samoshko, “with 101 ending in the second round; only 12 passed muster in the finals. Apart from the compulsory program including Bach, Schubert, and Chopin, the most challenging task was mastering a modern jury-selected composition in a week. I had to play Otto Pilkis’s piano concerto. The Finnish composer faced me with a rhythmically complex task. It was hard to memorize, let alone to perform. Not all of the contestants could cope with so much strain. Yakov Katsnelson of Moscow, placing fourth, tossed a bouquet on stage during the ceremony. The jitters, perhaps. After all, first place meant not only $130,000, but also two-year contracts for concerts at the world’s most prestigious audiences.”

In Ukraine, the 25-year-old Kharkiv resident’s triumph was known only to a narrow circle of specialists. The more so that, together with his Professor Marharius, he is currently enrolled in a postgraduate course at the Pianist Academy of Imola, Italy. Over the past month, Vitaly has appeared with a solo program in South Africa, and prior to the Kyiv concert returned from a tour of Japan. Now when Vitaly is asked about his home, he says, without any coquetry, “Onboard a plain or train. Over the two year of my family life I have hardly spent three months with my wife. I am thankful to the Belgian Embassy in Ukraine for organizing my concert here.” During his visit to Kyiv, the musician made a tentative agreement on performing Ukrainian compositions abroad.